Tane Edmed will get first crack at the playmaking duties after being named at five-eighth for the NSW Waratahs' Super Rugby Pacific season opener against the Brumbies.
Ben Donaldson will start the season at fullback, with fellow ball player Will Harrison due back in the coming weeks after missing most of last year with a torn ACL.
Harrison's impending return from a knee reconstruction and near-12-month rehabilitation will both increase the Waratahs' playmaking depth and add to the heat on Edmed and Donaldson to keep their starting spots.
Exciting young talent Max Jorgensen has beaten Fijian-Australian superstar recruit Nemani Nadolo for a wing berth, with Mark Nawaqanitawase to start on the other side following his spectacular form on the Wallabies' European tour last November.
With Wallaby Ned Hanigan injured, 29-year-old Kiwi Taleni Seu will make his Waratahs debut in the second row after joining the club following stints with the Chiefs and Toyota Industries Shuttles in Japan.
The Tahs host the Brumbies back at the rebuilt Allianz Stadium for the first time in five years on Friday night.
NSW WARATAHS SQUAD TO FACE THE BRUMBIES:
Angus Bell, David Porecki, Archer Holz, Jed Holloway, Taleni Seu, Lachlan Swinton, Michael Hooper, Charlie Gamble, Jake Gordon, Tane Edmed, Max Jorgensen, Lalakai Foketi, Izaia Perese, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Ben Donaldson. Replacements: Mahe Vailanu, Tom Lambert, Te Tera Faulkner, Hugh Sinclair, Langi Gleeson, Will Harris, Harrison Goddard, Nemani Nadolo.
